1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates, generally, to covers for pickup truck beds. More particularly, it relates to a telescoping cover that is securely locked at its leading end, middle end, and trailing end when fully extended and which fits truck beds of differing widths.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Pickup truck beds are open to the elements and thus have little utility in inclement weather. Numerous bed covers have been devised to cover the bed, but few have met with acceptance in the marketplace. Consumer resistance to the heretofore known bed covers is primarily attributable to the high cost of the product. The high cost, in turn, is attributable to the complexity of the available structures, and this complexity drives up the price of the units available.
The known bed covers also suffer from more serious problems as well. They are often built such that they lack structural integrity, for example. Many of the known bed covers have flat tops, and as such the tops are unable to support heavy loads. Although bed covers are not intended to be used as support surfaces in the first place, consumers do use them as such and are disappointed when their covers collapse under the weight of articles piled thereatop.
Another serious shortcoming of prior art bed covers is their lack of versatility. Many customers purchase a bed cover that fits the truck they own and assume it will also fit other trucks they may buy in the future. However, truck manufacturers do not have any standards to which they collectively subscribe. Accordingly, the customer who purchases a particular bed cover may not be able to use it on any other truck, including a later model of the same truck.
Some early bed covers have also been known to lift off and fly away from the truck at high speeds, due to the airfoil-like design of such covers.
Other bed covers have been known to fly off even at low speeds, due to the poor latches provided thereon.
Accordingly, there is a need in the pickup truck bed cover industry for a bed cover of simple yet elegant design that can be manufactured at a cost that translates into an affordable price at the retail level of distribution. The inexpensive design should nonetheless provide a cover having substantial structural integrity in case it is used in a manner inconsistent with its intended usage. Moreover, there is a need for a truck bed cover that is easily installed and just as easily locked into place at its leading and trailing ends.
However, the prior art, taken as a whole, neither teaches nore suggests how the limitations of the prior art pickup truck bed covers could be overcome in a cost-effective manner.